Samia: I Won’t Be Dragged Into Petty Media Squabbles

The National Chairman of the Convention People’s Party, Samia Nkrumah has reacted to her party’s 2012 Presidential candidate’s call for a change of leadership of the CPP.

In a statement released on her facebook page, the Daughter of Ghana’s first President Dr Kwame Nkrumah said: “In no way will some of us engage in public arguments nor will we be dragged into petty squabbles in the media”.

“The right place to discuss our problems is within not outside the party”.

Dr Abu Sakara Forster said on Wednesday January 9 that the party needed a Chairman who was more “culturally-attuned” to the political environment in Ghana.

The comment has been interpreted by the Women’s wing of the Party as a direct attack on Samia Nkrumah’s leadership of the Party.

The Women’s wing of the party issued a statement demanding an apology from Dr. Sakara for, in their words “his abysmal performance” in the elections.

The 2012 candidate however told XYZ News that he will offer no such apology. He also denied allegations by the Women’s Wing that he collected bribes from other parties so as to drown the CPP.

In her statement, Samia Nkrumah said: “It is not unusual to engage in heated discussions and debates on the way forward after an electoral defeat.

“We are a Democratic Party and we welcome self-criticism and reflection by all members. We, the leaders of the Party, are totally committed to protecting the solidarity and unity of our political force. I strongly urge all CPP executives, members, and sympathizers to remain focused on what we need to do in this period”.

She added that “we must without delay and beginning from the centre, organize ourselves. All national, regional and constituency executives are documenting our experiences and collating views as to what went wrong for us in the 2012 elections.

“Many of us have made serious sacrifices in terms of time, energy and resources to improve our fortunes. Although the harvest was potentially plentiful, the laborers were few at the end of the day. Ours is the typical challenge of a minority party trying to make its voice heard”.

According to her, “Ghanaians have told us what they think. They like our ideas but they do not consider us sufficiently organized to be given political power and govern. We have heard them clearly. We are not broken, we are not giving up and since the elections, we have spent every minute charting the way forward”.

The CPP’s only MP who lost the Jomoro seat also said it is not unexpected to have some people in the party oppose change.

“There is always resistance to an idea that threatens the status quo that seeks to make genuine change in a society. But the light of patriotism cannot be extinguished. Truth cannot be silenced forever. Sincerity cannot be destroyed. Those values that we want to inject into our politics are more required today than ever and nothing will deter us in our mission to make our country a more just and humane place”, she said.

She added: “We cannot and will never abandon our ideals and the vision of our mentor, the great Pan-Africanist, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah. This vision remains the realization of fair distribution of opportunities for all Ghanaians, to meet the basic needs of our citizens, to become a self-reliant, dignified and culturally confident nation, and to further the cause of African unity, our only way to become economically viable for the well-being of our people”.

“We do not want to get distracted with petty internal wrangling and forget our mission to serve Ghana with our ideas and our vision. We have dedicated our lives to this mission”.

She further urged the members of the party to remain unshaken by any internal criticism.

“Please stand firm and help us to, within 6 months, present Ghanaians with a well-organized Party, however small, which is worthy of being associated with the unmatched achievements of modern Ghana’s founder, Kwame Nkrumah”.